and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: in just a few hours, president barack obama and former massachusetts governor mitt romney will take the stage at the university of denver's magness arena for the first of three election debates. tonight's encounter, moderated by the "newshour's" own jim lehrer, is to focus on domestic policy. the first half of the 90-minute face-off will be spent on the number one issue for most voters this year: the economy. joining us for the debate, and here with us now to preview what to expect tonight are two familiar faces syndicated columnist mark shields and "new york times" columnist david brooks. gentlemen, welcome. the night is finally here. mark, no pressure, just 60 million people will be watching. what are you looking for from tonighta encounter? >> what i'm looking for, judy, is that the-- the candidate who understands of the two that the most important thing is not making a mistake but really making a point as to what his presidency would be about. i think both